The
sentencing of Ruth Arnao, former aide and longtime friend of convicted ex-State
Senator Vincent J. Fumo, brings limited closure to a sordid tale of petty theft
from a Pennsylvania non-profit. Arnao, once the head
of Citizens’ Alliance for Better Neighborhoods, was found guilty of conspiring
to defraud the nonprofit by getting it to pay for hundreds of personal and consumer
services. She was sentenced to serve 12 months and 1 day behind bars while Fumo got 55 months.

Meanwhile the state Attorney General’s Office took the first step toward dissolving
Citizens’ Alliance in April, filing a civil complaint seeking revocation of its
corporate franchise. The non-profit has issued a statement casting itself as a victim of Fumo and Arnao’s
fraud scheme. According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, in the victim impact
statement submitted last week just prior to Fumo's sentencing, Citizens’ Alliance said that it wanted
restitution, including the $2.1 million it had contributed to Arnao’s
defense. The report stated that the non-profit’s
reputation had been “damaged irreparably as a result of its constant
associations with the illegal activities of the defendants.” It also said that in addition to having to discontinue
many of its programs and discharge employees, the reputation of its board of
directors had been harmed.

As for the financial loss, Assistant U.S. Attorneys John J. Pease and Robert A. Zauzmer contended that as a
result of Fumo and Arnao’s fraud, which included purchases of tools, expensive paint, farm equipment and cars, the non-profit suffered $1.7 million in
losses, not including the money spent on lawyers.